Issue 20 For comments, articles & info contact your Organiser or [email protected] VJ DAY—75TH ANNIVERSARY VJ Day commemorations are due to take place across the country on 15th August. The Prince of Wales, accompanied by Her Royal Highness The Duchess of Cornwall, will lead a national moment of remembrance and thanksgiving for all those who served in the Far East with a two minutes’ silence at 11am as part of a special televised service. And - in the first such flight since the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games - the Red Arrows will conduct a UK wide flypast tribute over Edinburgh, Belfast, Cardiff and London. Closer to home, Chester Town Hall will be lit up in red, white and blue and decorated with union flags. There will also be a two minutes’ silence led by the Lord Mayor of Chester, Councillor Mark Williams at 11am. KNIT FOR OPAL Would you like to “Knit for OPAL”? We are launching an OPAL Community knitting project and invite all Members and Volunteers to get involved. If you can knit or crochet either a 4 inch or 6 inch square then we invite you to help us with our aim to make new cushions, knee blankets and neck warmers for OPAL Members at Clubs. If you are interested, please contact either OPAL Reach or your Organiser for more details. Also, we can supply needles and wool to anyone who would like to return to this pastime and needs supplies. BLAST FROM THE PAST - 75 YEARS AGO THIS WEEK (1945) Ho Chi Minh’s Viet Minh launch coordinated uprising against French rule in Vietnam. Japan surrenders unconditionally to end World War II. 89-year-old Marshall Petain found guilty of treason by French court. Churchill made a speech in the House of Commons referring to the Iron Curtain de- scending across Europe. Dutch East Indies declare independence from the Netherlands. HISTORY IN THE MAKING We have all been living through extraordinary times, and there are several projects in Cheshire using different ways to capture this unique period of time. In July, West Cheshire Museums ran a project to collect 30 objects to create a visual representation of how COVID 19 has affected the people of West Cheshire and are creating a lasting archive to show future generations. The Cheshire Image Bank is collecting photographs to ensure that life during the pandemic is recorded to add to their large collection depicting the events and histo- ries of our communities. They will choose 100 to hopefully represent the full range of ex- periences from all communities Cheshire-wide. If photography isn’t your strength, how about writing about your experiences? ‘A Story Shared’ is a creative project inspired by Haylo Theatre, developed with Cheshire Archives and Age-friendly Cheshire West. The project captures this extraordinary moment in time through the experiences and stories of older community members, stories that may otherwise go unheard. Visit www.agefriendlycheshirewest.org/a-story-shared for more information- and remember OPAL are also capturing memories in the Book of You project. TITLE—calibri 14 in bold How many words (three letters or VJ Day 75, BBC1, Saturday 15th August, more) can you make from :- 9.30am, (Special coverage with 2 minutes’ silence led by Prince of Wales at 11am) VICTORY VJ Day 75 Documentary, BBC 1, Saturday 15th August, 8.30pm 1) Which flag has a cedar tree on its flag? 2) Which is the only country that doesn’t have a rectangular flag? 3) Which flag has a red disc on a green background? 4) Which country has a George Cross in the upper hoist? 5) Which country has a flag with an off centre yellow cross on a blue back ground? 6) The flag of the Red Cross is the reverse of which country’s flag? LAST WEEK’S ANSWERS: 1) 1950’s 2) Liverpool Road in Manchester 3) Hot air balloon 4) By electricity from overhead wires 5) Oban 6) James Brindley MAY FROM MALPAS OPAL CLUB Where were you born? At number 20 Brownlow Street in Whitchurch – I was the middle one of three children. What’s one of your early memories? We had moved to Wayland Road which had running water, a bath and flush toilet but when I was 8 we moved out of Whitchurch to Catterals Lane, Ash which had no modern facilities!! Where is your favourite place to be? Llandudno in North Wales was a favourite place of my late husband Gerald and myself – so many happy memories from visiting and holidaying there. Who makes you laugh? My great granddaughter Evelyn aged 5 who makes up wonderful stories! Tell us something that we may already not know about you? I remember going to the vicarage at St Alkmunds for confirmation classes and one evening we were very early so the Rector asked us to wait and he would call us when he was ready. By the vicarage wall was a small tree with ripe plums on it so I persuaded one of the boys to put me on his shoulders and between us we picked 12 lovely plums – 2 each in our pockets. The Rector called us in and told us that he had decided to highlight one of the 10 Commandments which was ‘Thou shall not steal’ and then he instructed us to put all the plums in the bowl provided!! Which OPAL service do you use? For 10 years I helped cook lunches for Age Concern in the Jubilee Hall at Malpas and then at the age of 70 I became a member of the same group. I very much enjoy my two days each week with all of my friends at Malpas OPAL Club. Our Volunteers put on a great variety of activities, entertainment and excellent lunches. Do you have a favourite quote or poem? The poem ‘Forget-me-nots’. © 2020. OPAL Services (Rural West Cheshire) .